Are Brown Eggs Really More Expensive Than White Eggs?

When you're walking down the grocery aisle, it's easy to become overwhelmed with options. One metric you can use to whittle down the possible choices is price, but that is by no means a foolproof method for filling the perfect shopping cart.

You may be tempted to pay a premium to purchase organic food, but experts like Harvard's Robert Paarlberg would advise against it. In "Resetting the Table: Straight Talk about the Food We Grow and Eat," Paalberg argues that organic food is produced using unsustainable farming practices, and as such, that its potential consumer benefits are dramatically outweighed by the ecological cost, per The Harvard Gazette. There are certain cleaning products, food, and more that you should always buy generic. Regardless, new data shows shoppers are sticking with private-label food brands over all others.

However, when you find yourself walking down the egg aisle, questions of brand and origin are cast aside in favor of color considerations. What is the difference between brown and white eggs, and is there a discrepancy in price between the two options?

The next time you're at a grocery store, you may find yourself asking the question, "Brown eggs or white?" While you might assume that the scientific explanation for an egg's coloration would be an incredibly difficult concept to explain, it's actually quite straightforward. If you ever, as a child, heard the common joke about chocolate milk coming from brown-spotted cows, you essentially understand why eggs come in different colors. White hens lay white eggs, and brown hens lay brown eggs. It really is that simple.

The concept may seem almost cartoonishly sophomoric, but it's just the result of genetics. The genes that control pigmentation in a hen's eggs are the same as those that affect the hen's earlobe coloration. Despite looking completely distinct on the outside, there are no inherent nutritional differences between brown and white eggs. Because of these similarities, you may be confused as to why there is often a gap in egg price linked to their color.

There are a number of reasons why a brown egg might cost more than a white egg. For starters, brown eggs are rarer than their pale counterparts. The most ubiquitous breed of laying hen in the country is the White Leghorn, which, as you might expect, produces white eggs. Brown eggs, because they are laid by considerably less common brown chickens, are most costly by virtue of their limited supply.

On average, brown hens are bigger than white hens, and as such, it can be more costly to care for and feed them. Modern farming practices have essentially mitigated this price factor, but brown eggs are still more expensive, which could be explained by the fact that brown hens are more popular with farmers who sell free-range and organic eggs.

 Nevertheless, there is no flavor difference between the two types of eggs once you get past their respective shells. Which egg you choose to crack open for breakfast is up to personal preference.